Lieberman's First Day

Avigdor Lieberman has wasted no time in making his views known in his first day as Israel's Foreign Minister, making remarks that while Israel is bound by the Road Map, it is not bound by the Annapolis agreements of 2007, and later clarifying that his remarks were in fact "an expression of change in Israel's policy regarding the peace process."

The US has just reiterated its support for a two-state solution.

Lieberman may simply be giving voice to Netanyahu's reluctance to commit to an independent Palestinian state, despite acceptance of the Road Map, but the fact that he is such a polarizing figure in Israeli politics and so closely watched by Arab states committed to the peace process may mean that his policy pronoucements will be given far more attention than an ordinary Foreign Minister would command. But that also means that any negative nuances will be blown out of normal proportion because of Lieberman's reputation and confrontational personality. Certainly much of the world is paying close attention to his first-day pronouncements: here's Al-Jazeera English service's coverage of the statement, to give one example of Arab world coverage.